The app's description itself stresses that people must be 17 years or older to download it and indicates that it contains profanity or crude humor; sexual content or nudity; fear themes; realistic violence; and cartoon or fantasy violence.

Despite the app's seemingly objectionable themes, Hao speculated that the "illegal" items were actually three books from Chinese writer Wang Lixiong. Wang has written about Tibet's struggle to assert its independence from China, prompting the Chinese government to ban his books.

Wang's entry on Wikipedia describes him as "a well-known Tibetologist, specialist, and critic of Chinese-Tibetan relations" and "regarded as one of the most outspoken dissidents, democracy activists, and reformers in China."

"Friends of mine tell me that Apple has had a censorship policy in place for at least two years so I'm not sure if my app's removal has anything to do with Apple's recent trouble," Hao told the Financial Times (subscription required). "But the app has been operating normally for the last two months until now without any problems."

If Apple did ban the app based on China's objections to Wang's books, a certain irony arises. One of Apple's famous late '90s "Think Different" posters celebrated the Dalai Lama, though the poster itself was never used in the actual ad campaign. The Dalai Lama himself has earned the wrath of the Chinese government for his strong pro-Tibet stance.

CNET contacted Apple for comment on the app's removal and will update the story if the company responds.

About the author

Journalist, software trainer, and Web developer Lance Whitney writes columns and reviews for CNET, Computer Shopper, Microsoft TechNet, and other technology sites. His first book, "Windows 8 Five Minutes at a Time," was published by Wiley & Sons in November 2012.
See full bio